Poso Muslim leader found beheaded

A local Muslim leader was found dead and decapitated in the Central Sulawesi town of Poso on Saturday after having been missing for two days, Antara reported.

The body of Sukirman was discovered two kilometers from his farmland in Tegalrejo subdistrict by his neighbors at around 8 a.m. local time.

Witnesses said the victim also had several stab wounds.

Head of the provincial national unity office Amirullah Syiah dismissed the possibility that the murder of Sukirman was linked to the two-year sectarian conflict between Muslims and Christians which had been formally resolved in December last year.

"There have been no reports of any outbreak of violence following the finding of the body," Amirullah said.

Poso Police deputy chief Comr. Yusman Jaya said he knew nothing about the murder.

The finding came as signatories of the December 2001 peace agreement were meeting in Poso to evaluate the effectiveness of the peace deal. Many of them expressed their shock after hearing the report.

They called on the police to probe the brutal killing, so that it would not be a threat to peace in the town.

Poso Police resumed a crackdown on illegal weapons on Aug. 1 in order to maintain peace in the territory.

Central Sulawesi Police deputy chief Brig. Gen. Zainal Abidin Ishak told reporters a number of home-made rifles had been confiscated during the operation so far, which included searches on houses of people suspected of possessing illegal weapons. -- JP